swim instructor

aquatics manager

customer service manager

front desk receptionist

swim school manager

Bear Paddle Swim School

A typical work day consists of a pre-shift, getting in the water and starting classes, if it is a weekend you go on a lunch break, then teach the rest of your classes, shower(or just change), and then clean. If it is week 3 (around the 3rd week of the month) we do reports on all of our kids swimming skills for the parents. 
Bear paddle is a good company and I have learned a lot from working here, I learned more on handling and teaching children. I have also learned a lot more responsibility, I have learned better swimming skills while teaching, I have learned to project my voice and be less nervous about talking to new people. 
Management has been great from my experience, I know we had a management change before I was hired and it has gotten much better. Management talks to/with you and not at you, they have helped me grow my teaching skills and safety skills. 
On the other hand workplace culture has been full of drama and people starting random rumors. It has gotten better in the past month but when you have a bunch of teens-young adults in a workspace it’s bound to start some drama. But that is only a small section of the people here, a lot of the people here are very nice and helpful. 
The hardest part of the job would 100% be getting sick. Working with kids always has the risk to get sick, and this job is no different. I have been more sick this year than I have ever been any other year. 
The most enjoyable part of the job is teaching the kids and being able to see them progress and have that lightbulb moment. Being able to see how far they have come and watch them get patches and move up the levels. 

I really like this job, so everything I say in this review comes with love. I started right before summer began and the general manager is great. However, as of recent, some people have been hired that do not care for the job and make others do their work for them and management has been far too lenient with them. Not only this, but people who started here later are being paid 2 dollars an hour more than those of us who have been with the company for longer. Recently, they have cut some people's hours quite a bit and have stopped listening to many suggestions. I feel like the kids I work with are being switched in and out of my classes. For instance, there was one kid I taught for approximately three months before he was switched out. A few weeks later, he was back in my class, and then out again the next week. He has appeared inconsistently in my classes and disappeared again and I cannot imagine he is able to learn that way. I truly love working with the kids and speaking to the parents, but I do not feel as though I will ever progress further than the role I am currently in. 
The hardest part of the job is that you are expected to keep incredibly high spirits at all times, and dropping a smile can get you a complaint to management.

manager communicate poorly and then get angry when you didn’t read their mind and correct certain issues. Managers, deck specialists, and parents hover while you teach which can be pretty weird/annoying. Parents get very skeptical of your teaching abilities when managers/DS make corrections or get in the water in the middle of a lesson. Parents are sometimes weird in general about your teaching style, especially if you happen to be a newer teacher and they know this. lessons are super fun if the kids were in a good mood, but if a kid doesn’t want to swim and decides to cry/not get in the water, there’s not much you can do and the parents sometimes stare at you expecting you to somehow force them to get in and swim lol. They make changes in schedule without letting us know in advance. Lots of changes in management have been made and sometimes are weirdly secretive about people leaving, etc. I like a lot of my coworkers though they are around my age (mostly college age) and are mostly pretty friendly and fun to talk to, but since you are in the water teaching you don’t really get to talk to coworkers besides the 5 mins before and after a shift. You also have to do some cleaning of the facility which isn’t hard at all but is sometimes annoying after a long shift in the water!

Bear Paddle is awesome. Extremely communicative, you can easily text coworkers and bosses and get a quick response. Pre-shift meetings every day so you have a chance to ask questions. Very friendly managers, easy to make friends. Pretty good safety around the pool. Ask for more training and they will give it to you, act dedicated like a manager and you'll make it to that position eventually. The hardest part of the job for me was getting attached to the kids and feeling too worried if any other teachers were not being strict on safety, but the lifeguard and deck specialists did a good job keeping safety as a priority.

Not a good place to work if you are gossipy or can't hide frustration well. Kids are sensitive to your mood, so you have to be good at smiling through the shift and being friendly even if the kids are being wild. Sometimes other teachers will get gossipy once you start it, too, which can affect everybody's morale. As long as you are kind and energetic, definitely apply even if you have no teaching or swimming experience. They can train you for that stuff!

A typical day at bear paddle includes a pre-shift setting expectations for the shift, 6-8 30 minute classes, an on the clock shower, cleaning, and progress reports once a month. 

I have learned how to be a part of a team, how to properly manage time, and what it feels like the be valued and respected as a member of staff. 

The management has been nothing but respectful and understanding of me. The management team has literally told me to stop doing so much work because I don’t get paid for that. 

The workplace culture is great, all of the staff have been so open and accepting of myself and my disabilities. 

The hardest part of the job is the toll being in chlorine takes on your skin and hair. You have to be prepared to have a good skin care and hair routine. It is also a very active job. 

The most enjoyable part of the job is the kids. I have kids that I have taught for multiple levels and being a part of making them safer swimmers has been so incredibly rewarding. I have seen parents cry because they never thought their kid would be comfortable enough in the water to go under and with time and patience they have managed to do more than they ever dreamed of. 

I love bear paddle and I genuinely see this being my forever career. 

Absolute dumpster fire. Upper management is clicky and talks bad about employees they dont see as friends.  I was literally one of the few people in that company who not only came with swim and childcare background, but they only care about the money coming in and not the safety or communication with families. They have people in positions they have no place being in. The district manager is complete garbage, and don't get me started on the cleanliness of the facilities. I tried to create an amazing team, only to be shot down. I walked out after a year and a half because it's a mental nightmare. The allow employees to cuss in front of families with no reprimand and have cut out any form of hourly staff getting raises or advancement. They don't train properly and don't care if anything happens to students. When I left, their AED machine hadn't been working for 2 years! Big no no. Go to Foss if you really want to have a good experience in the aquatic world. 

You will be front desk, customer service, outreach, and a swim teacher for the same pay. Work will come home with you because the expectation is that no tasks are left incomplete at the end of the day but the day is spent building up those exact same tasks. They will have one person at the desk, with the other supervisor upset they can’t be promoted even though they are not qualified and will create a hostile environment, but look to you as the problem. Employees will call off, no call, or walk out on shifts with little ramifications and any complaint to corporate is risking your job because they do not investigate claims. You will spend hours calling families and canceling classes because of this, and any fallout falls onto you. The policies they teach you are not how they operate, and will fault you for doing what you were trained to do rather than giving in to every demand made. If an email goes to corporate, you’re screwed because they do not investigate these claims. Teaching classes was the only highlight of this position. 

When working at Bear Paddle one is given 15 minutes before the class begins to get ready and go to a pre-shift meeting. After all classes are over which usually last 30 minutes each one is given 15 minutes to change and go to a post-shift meeting to review one's performance and what one as an instructor can do to improve and help children gain the required skills.  You are trained to learn all of Bear Paddle's teaching methods and are provided with a lesson plan for each level of swimming. Management can be very strict and will try to be as supportive as possible in times of need but one is responsible in finding their own substitute when ill which is almost just as much work as actually working one's shift. The most enjoyable part of the job is seeing one's student gradually begin to gain confidence in new skills.

You are left responsible for so much on top of a regular swim instructor job. You're expected  to maintain a relationship with every kid and their families; which can be difficult when you can see 125+ children in a given week. You also have to be able to remember how each child is doing in their class to write an individualized progress report for each child once a month. The pool conditions are ridiculous. A weekend shift can consist of anywhere from 8-9 half hour classes, and 2-3  half hour make-up classes for kids who missed theirs in previous weeks. that's 5-6 HOURS in a heavily chlorinated/saltwater pool, with no break. Hair damage and skin damage to the instructors is the main complaint that was heard from those I worked with. My skin burned, and my hair was very brittle. I would go home and spend almost 2 hours showering, lotioning, hair masking, and trying to recover from the conditions that I would inevitably have to face the next day or day after. They saddle you with a lot for $15-$16/hr.

The work here is exhausting. Kids can be hard to work with bacuae they always have their own agendas. You must love kids or you will hate your job. The water is kept at 90 degrees which is great, and they don't use harsh chemicals which is also a bonus.The company is great and I love working for them. You work independently and get your own class. Schedules are consistent so they you teach the same kids each week. Cleaning is a part of the job post-shift. There is a lot of training, but it's fun and you meet a ton of great people. I would highly recommend working here. Management is caring and understanding of your busy schedule outside of work and emergencies. If you are honest, hard working, and fair to the company, they will treat you well. Overall its a very rewarding job because the kids get used to you and tell you about their day and show your their new bathing suit and get excited to swim with you. Its great.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Swim instructor 16 salaries reported	$16.12 per hour
Aquatics manager 1 salary reported	$23.00 per hour
Customer service manager 2 salaries reported	$22.75 per hour
Front desk receptionist 6 salaries reported	$16.15 per hour
Swim school manager 6 salaries reported	$61,750 per year

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